Foot covering inner sole or protective stocking and method of manufacture on circular stocking knitters

Abstract: The present invention pertains to a foot-covering innersole or protective stocking manufactured on circular stocking knitters and consisting of two parts (11, 12) in the manner of pocket-type heels, which face each other and are joined as one piece by a middle zone (13), and of an elastic border (14), which is made and knitted in with the said two parts (11, 12) directly and as one piece on the circular machine which operates with reciprocating motion.

Description: The present invention pertains to the manufacture of knitted articles in the form of foot-covering innersoles or protective stockings on circular stocking knitters. The knitted articles, in the form of foot-covering innersoles or protective stockings, are presently manufactured on circular stocking knitters and are then taken up again to attach a standard elastic to them, by means of stitching, on the border of each of them. DE-C-931 000 is a document describing such a prior art method. The elastic, which is inserted by stitching, in addition to having a negative effect on the production cost, also poses problems of adapting to the foot, that is, problems of wearability of the manufactured article in that the elastic can be irritating. The object of the present invention is to provide a knitted article of the above type in which the elastic is manufactured directly on the circular machines by being processed in the knit of the manufactured article, which prevents the use of an elastic separately attached to the innersole, any stitching operation and the costs pertaining thereto. Another object of the present invention is to provide a knitted article in the form of a foot-covering innersole or protective stocking with improved features of adaptability and wearability in that the elastic border produced on the circular machine, although it is made in one piece with the knit, is soft and thin and does not create irritations when wearing the manufactured article. These objects are achieved with a manufactured article in the form of a foot-covering innersole or protective stocking in accordance with claim 1 and thus complete with an elastic border manufactured directly on a circular machine which operates with reciprocating motion. The present invention will be better explained in the description below with reference to the attached drawing, in which the only figure shows a finished foot-covering innersole or protective stocking. The foot-covering innersole or protective stocking being examined consists of two parts 11, 12 in the manner of pocket-type heels, which face each other and are joined in one piece by a middle zone 13 of the manufactured article, and it is provided with an elastic border 14. The article being examined is manufactured on circular stocking knitters, having a needle-holder cylinder which is also capable of reciprocating rotaly motion, and provided, in the known manner, with stitch-drop stations for rotations both in one direction and in the other direction of the cylinder. More specifically, the article is manufactured by making an initial part out of elastic, with reciprocating motion and with a part of the needles on the cylinder, so as to form a first semi-annular part 15 of the elastic border 14. Then, a first pocket 11 (in the manner of a heel) is knitted, with reciprocating motion, using the needles on the machine as needed. After having appropriately made the intermediate part 13, the second pocket 12 (in the manner of a heel), which faces the first part and is joined with the first part by means of the intermediate part, is then made. The manufactured article is then finished by making, always with a reciprocating motion and with the desired number of needles, a second part made of elastic 15', whose ends are joined by knitting to the ends 16 of the first elastic part 15. Thus, the two elastic parts 15, 15' together form the annular elastic border 14 on the entire border of the manufactured article. Therefore, the article, in the form of a foot-covering innersole or protective stocking, is made as one piece on the circular machine with reciprocating motion, including an elastic border, without the need for taking up again for subsequent processing and with improved features such as wearability which cannot be obtained with the prior art methods.

Claims: Foot-covering innersole or protective stocking manufactured on circular stocking knitters, comprising two parts (11, 12) in the manner of pocket-type heels, which face each other and are joined as one piece by a middle zone (13) and an elastic border (14) characterised in that the elastic border (14) is made and knitted to the said two parts (11, 12) directly and as one piece. A method of creating a foot-covering innersole or protective stocking in accordance with claim 1, characterised by making an initial part (15) out of elastic, with reciprocating motion and with a part of the needles on the cylinder of a circular knitter, so as to form a first semi-annular part of the elastic border (14), followed by knitting with reciprocating motion a first heel-type pocket (11) continuously with the said first part (15) of the elastic border (14), then continuing the knitting with reciprocating motion to form the middle part (13) and the second heel-type pocket (12), which faces the first heel-type pocket (11), and by finally making, with reciprocating motion, a second elastic part (15'), whose ends are joined by knitting, to the ends (16) of the first elastic part (15) to form, directly on the machine, a complete elastic border (14) which is made as one piece with the knit of the manufactured article.

Inventors: PEDRINI MARIO G, PEDRINI, MARIO G.
Applicants: PEDRINI GM CALZIFICIO, CALZIFICIO GI-EMME DI PEDRINI G. MARIO & C. S.N.C.
Application year: 1994
Main classification: A41B11
IPC codes: A41B11, D04B1